Tunisia 1942 - 1943

British Infantry Divisions

A total of nine British infantry divisions were eventually
deployed in the Tunisian campaign. Of these, the 1 Infantry
Division, 4 Infantry Division, 46
Infantry Division and 78 Infantry
Division were part of 1 Army, whilst 50 Infantry
Division, 51 Infantry Division and
56 Infantry Division were all part of 8 Army
advancing into Tunisia from Libya.

The first division to arrive in Tunisia was the 78 Infantry
Division. It landed on the 9 November 1942 being deployed
as brigade groups. The 36 Infantry Brigade advanced into Tunisia
along the northern route via Sedjenane, the 11 Infantry Brigade
took the central route via Beja, with Blade Force from the 6
Armoured Division taking the southern route to Medjaz el Bab.
Despite almost getting within sight of Tunis, the Germans managed
to reinforce Tunisia sufficiently quickly to halt the Allied
advance.

The next division to land was the 46 Infantry
Division which arrived on the 17 January 1943. By this
date, the line had stablised, but on 14 February 1943, the Germans
launched an offensive towards Kasserine. The battle lasted until 22
February 1943, when the Germans withdrew.

The Tunisian campaign was in danger of becoming a stalemate, so the
decision was taken to reinforce the 1st Army. The 1
Infantry Division arrived on 9 March 1943 and 4
Infantry Division on 23 March 1943, both formations coming
direct from the United Kingdom. All four of these infantry
divisions played a part in the final offensive that took place
between the 5 May and 12 May 1943.